Character Creation
Basic Questions What’s a good way to start a backstory for my character? A good way to start is to pull out some paper or notepad and brainstorm. Think in general. Simple terms first, the add details, using the research you have done and your resources. Toss out the things that might not fit. The genre can and will dictate some of these, but it’s good to see what you can come up with. Do you need a “full” backstory to role-play? The answer is no. However, the more info in your backstory, the better you can define your character and how he/she exists in the game world. Some role-players keep a few notes on hand and “wing it” adding as they go. Get a couple of index cards, jot down some basics to remember, and go from there. Either system can work. Just use what works best and is fun for you. When you get done, should have a couple of paragraphs (or more) or a nice list of information regarding the character’s backstory. This will help you as a “blueprint” for your character to start role-playing – how the character sees the world and interacts with it and other characters. It also gives you a general idea of where you are headed as well. Here’s a short and simple example questions to help brainstorm: The Past: # Where was your character born and raised? # Who is your family or guardians? Siblings? # How did your “family” and upbringing influence your character’s childhood? # What had your character learned through education and childhood? # What major events and/or people growing up help shape your character? # What has your character done since growing up? Recent Past/Present: # What has your character done recently prior to being “active” in the server? # What does your character actually “do” for a living? # How would your character explain it to a stranger if he/she had to? # What is your character’s present mental/emotional/physical state? # What is your character’s world view, beliefs and/or mindset? # What is your character’s morals or values? # What are your character’s quirks, merits, flaws and/or character traits? # What are your character’s likes/loves and dislikes/hates? # What does your character do well? Doesn’t do well? # What does your character do when “off the clock”? # How does your character speak (dialects, accents, etc.) to others? # Does your character use certain expressions or words, if any? The Future: # What are your character’s short term goals? # What are your character’s long term goals? # What motivates or drives your character? # How “social” will your character be when interacting with others, if at all? # How would you like your character to be remembered? Does it matter? Backstory Tips: * Use the lore to help you with research and the details. Doing so can really help with fleshing out your character’s details. * Try to keep your “brushes with fame” at a minimum. * Forge your own path, not copy someone else’s. It’s ok to borrow and adapt a favourite character’s backstory from another source – but don’t “steal” it. Make your own unique character and use your imagination. * Don’t go overboard, keep it simple. It’s like using spices: Sometimes a dash is better than a handful. * Not everything will fit sometimes. That’s normal, so don’t feel discouraged. * If you don’t know something that might be crucial, start digging and asking reliable sources/people to fill in the blanks. * If you think your character’s backstory sounds weird, recheck your lore or get a second opinion. If it still sounds weird, it needs more work. * Remember: Even “regular” folks can be great heroes. Research And Lore The first step in making your future (or existing) character “fit” into the server world is to know some of the lore (world details and background). This is done through researching the information that you can find on the genre and server world. It’s timeline, history – prominent characters and even details like customs, language and such. No... you don’t have to know -everything- about the world, but every bit helps – for both IC and OOC knowledge. Just keeping some notes to the side or in game can help. Read the sources of information on both the wiki and in game. Keep your eyes open for retcons – they do happen, but hopefully the impact will not be severe in your character’s backstory. Some of you may ask though, “What’s lore have to do with it?” Knowing the backstory (history/details) of the world helps with your character’s history and backstory later on. Otherwise, you are a fish out of water, not really understanding what is going on. Names & Naming I cannot begin how important this can be for your character. Names have an influence on role-playing, just as the other parts of a backstory. It can sometimes make or break a character, especially how other role-players interact with the character ICly and OOCly. Pick names that are logical based on race, environs, and lore. Sometimes taking a look at the way names are done in the game’s lore and such can give you a good idea of what you can name your character – and what to avoid. Explore words and names that are unique or borrow from other sources, just make it your own. Search engines, literature, and your imagination are great tools or examples – and what to steer clear from. Trying a baby name sites/books or a random name generator (using your search engine of choice) might be a great solution for many names. Another source could be using names from literature, film, and giving them a twist, to make them “yours”, not “theirs”. We don’t need any Gandalfs. Just saying’. Character Description A Character Description ideally tells people what your character looks like physically, including any sounds, scents or mannerisms. This goes back to Tabletop/Pen and Paper gaming, like Dungeons and Dragons. The DM would give a short description of a NPC (non-player character) if a player asked, or if there was a prominent person nearby. It also helped get a feel for what each player looked like – especially since we didn’t dress the part. Here’s a simple Character Description we might get: The attractive young woman nearby has with short blond hair and blue eyes. Her skin is a light tan, and her blue dress seems to be common, but well kept. From there, we got a basic idea of what she looked like. If a player spoke to her, the DM would give further information, such as how she speaks, mannerisms and anything else relevant during the NPC conversation. To get an idea, take a RL perspective: How would someone describe you if they saw you across the room? Now... picture your character. How would he/she be seen? Outward appearance Mannerisms Items, such as weapons, jewellery, clothing details. Sensory details (smell, sounds) Vibes or auras Role-playing fills in the other information. Backstory Example Now it’s time to bring this together: We did some digging to find out more about the game’s lore, setting and other information. This gave us reference points. We have a Name for our character. We have a good Character Description to help us picture the character. We have a Backstory, either in paragraph or list form. Here’s a simple Backstory Example of all that put to use: Full Name: Steve Smith Nick: Steve Age: 19 Gender: Male Race: Human Nation: Skania Character Description: Steve has dark brown hair, light brown skin, and blue eyes, with a light blue shirt (un-tucked on the left hand side and in the back), a pair of blue jeans, and gray shoes. Steve's face is covered with a beard of light brown stubble. Backstory: Occupation: Likes: Dislikes: Merits: Flaws: Faith: Personal Goals: Category:Roleplay